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| Criterion | ![]() UX Research Contextual Inquiry | ![]() UX Research Diary Study | ![]() Facilitation Alignment Mapping | ![]() Facilitation 3-Circle Venn Diagram |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When work processes are known only from accounts and the real context stays hidden, Contextual Inquiry makes behavior at the workplace visible. Observation and follow-up questions together show how people actually work, get interrupted, and improvise. | When experiences build up over days or weeks and a single session cannot capture them, Diary Study records the course of everyday life. Recurring triggers, moods, and habits become visible this way, beyond the sharpness of memory. | When several people work toward one goal but hold different mental maps, Alignment Mapping makes the discrepancies visible. It arranges goals, assumptions, and priorities so shared direction becomes verifiable. | When three perspectives matter at the same time, a Three-Circle Venn Diagram shows the overlaps and remainders precisely. It makes visible where shared effect arises and where only a partial perspective applies. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Medium | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 1-3 Wochen | 1-4 Wochen | 1-2 h | 15-45 min |
Participantsdifferent | 4-12 Beobachtungen | 5-20 | 4-12 | 2-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Async | Workshop | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Field Notes, Workflow Insights, Pain Points | Diary Entries, Longitudinal Patterns, Experience Timeline | Alignment Map, Open Issues, Decision Questions | Venn Diagram, Overlap Notes, Differentiators |
Tagsno overlap | UX researchObservationContext | UX researchTrackingBehavior | AlignmentStakeholdersStrategyFacilitation | ComparisonFacilitationAlignment |



